User blog:Thrush the Bard/High Crimes
Introduction This Redwall fanfiction is entitled HIGH CRIMES and is in progress. Please enjoy and comment as you like! =) Chapter 1 Kinjay looked down the cliff face, his cloak billowing in the wind. The fox looked over his shoulder at an otter and said, "Dan. You ready?" Dan, in his gruff voice, replied, "Since the day I was born." Kinjay smiled. He turned back to the cliff face. Five vermin were ascending the face, two with knives gleaming in the bright sunlight. Their paws padded softly as they maintained a steady climb. One locked eyes with Kinjay and glared. "It's time." Kinjay and Dan made their way past the small plateau towards a rocky outcrop. Behind the rocks sat piles of pebbles - perfect for a fight. "Glintar is with them. Let's get him first, then pick off his weaker mates." Dan frowned. "Glintar?" Kinjay grabbed a stone and rubbed his chin slowly with a paw. A few moments passed, yet no vermin heads peeked up. Dan sighed and threw a stone out towards the cliff face. "I'm getting impatient." "Just a little - ow!" A stone hit Kinjay in the shoulder. He looked at Dan and blinked. "Since when did stones -" Another stone came from his left. Then, three vermin emerged out of nowhere, armed with rusty scimitars. "They must've crabbed it an' gone around us!" Dan unsheathed his sword and growled. Prophetically, three vermin appeared from the opposite side. Kinjay stood and backed up against Dan. "Run!" The two shot off like arrows across the high plateau. Silent pine trees began popping up across the landscape. The smell of clear water wallowed sweetly through the air, all a disturbing contrast to the two pounding footsteps echoing off boulders. A stone flew past Dan's ear. He turned back and looked, but did not see Glintar. Dan barely let a stone fly, missing its target by a few arm's lengths. "...Not used to this! Not in my training!" Kinjay, on the other hand, had a more steady paw. One vermin fell under his stone; however, the other vermin were a little more ready than their compatriot and ducked in time. Dan aimed low and knocked one out. "Ha ha ha!" Cried Dan. "Dan! On the count of three, follow my lead. We need to get rid of these vermin so we can focus on Glintar." "Well, hokay if y'say matey!" "OK. Ever done a dive-tribe?" "Er... Ah... No." "OK. I'm going for the one with the earing. You go for the one on the left." "An' do what?" "Dan, think of something." "... OK!" Kinjay grimaced. "Three... two... one..." The two skidded to a stop. Kinjay immediately somersaulted and performed a slicing maneuver with his dagger. The vermin fell to the ground instantly. Dan, on the other hand, chose less than fancy means. He simply extended his leg outward so that the other vermin ran into it. The vermin keeled over from the wind being knocked out of his chest, and coughed loudly. Dan whipped his sword out and the third vermin smartly avoided the sword. The third, forth, and fifth vermin stopped next to their smart cousin and withdrew their swords. They eyed Kinjay's daggers. Kinjay threw one and downed a vermin, while Dan slashed towards another. The vermin parleyed his blow, and swung around towards Dan's shoulder. Dan quickly raised the butt of the hilt into the air so the two blades collided, in a defensive move. Dan then kicked out at the vermin's knee and he fell. Dan hesitated, and Kinjay finished the job. Five vermin lay scattered around Kinjay and Dan. Dan frowned and spat, "I was gonna get 'im!" Kinjay said, "No you weren't and you know you were not going to." Dan sighed. "Jay, so tell me why you can keep doing that." "My life and the life of my friend was at stake." *** A dim light appears in the distance. Early morning light beams penetrate the thick forest overgrowth and sprawl across where Kinjay and Dan slept the night before. A beam slowly made its way towards Dan’s eyes. When the beam finally arrives to his eyes, he opens them slowly and yawns rather loudly. “Yawwwwwrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Kinjay moans in his half-sleep state and rolls over on his other side. He forces his eyes open as best as he possibly could and sits up. "Mornin'." Kinjay feels around in his sack. Finding what he was looking for, he withdraws it. It was the Sword of Martin the Warrior. Dan eyes the gleaming blade. "Wha- where'd you get that?!" Kinjay shrugs and turns the blade to the other side, eyeing it as well. His gaze is inquisitive. "I found it." "Nobody just _finds_ the Sword of Martin!" Dan narrows his eyes. "You _stole_ it, didn't you?" Kinjay wraps the sword in a crimson sash. "Well, I guess." "You guess? Ack. No wonder we've been chased for the past day. They probably tracked us as soon as we both high-tailed it out of Mossflower!" "Well we are up in the Highlands now. Salamandastron is a few days away from here. Perhaps if we stay here for a while we could... Well, let me think." He paused for a moment and continued. "Nah. I say, let's go to Sala. Might as well check up on the hares to see if we cannot get some help. They're oddly... missing from the whole picture." Dan nods slowly. "Aye. It's unlike them to be this quiet. Ever since the last badger known to exist in Mossflower died, things have been a political upheaval over there. They stopped talking to Redwall and-" Kinjay gave Dan a confused look. "Really? I did not know that!" "Aye! The badger lord was a little oblivious. A few of us at Redwall knew what was up; however, he just continued to live in his own little world for the time being." Dan continued after sighing. "He knew his time was up. He was getting along in years. It was only a matter of time before he would go or we would be gotten!" Kinjay and Dan began to gather up their things. As they did, they talked. "Seems like it'll be a good day no?" Dan frowned. "Nah, we're being chased." "Wait - Glintar? Where did he go?" "He's not dumb. Two versus one? If he's smart he went back. If he's dumb, he stayed." "Stays." "Right. He could still be out here. Let's keep our eyes peeled for any obvious signs." Kinjay smiled and struck a confident pose. "Have no fear, our assassin tracker is here!" "Whatever. You think you are good or something!" The cool air of the forest settled thickly on the mountains overlooking Mossflower. The sunlight beams become more angled as the morning wore on as Kinjay and Dan made their way through the woods. The air is a little thinner up here than Mossflower, but not too much for the two fit beasts. Kinjay is from a tightly regimented horde life, and the otter has a similar background at the Abbey. He and eight other sea otters made up a regiment of guards for the Abbey. The two remained oddly quiet throughout their journey to the other side of the mountains. Kinjay finally broke the silence. "I feel some odd pride of purpose having this sword. But I think, fear, that it may be a worthless endeavor." "How do you mean?" "Well, according to all those books that are in the Abbey library, Martin manifests himself to whoever has the sword. I mean. Sorry. I mean to say, he manifests himself to the enemy and the hero." "Okaaaay. Go on." "But today feels so different than back then. Here we both are, natural enemies by birth, united together in survival." "My you are quite the philosopher! Just be sure you don't wane like the moon too much. Ugh." "Haha. Don't worry, I'll try to be practical. Anyhow, Martin seems to have gone to nowhere. It makes me think he doesn't exist." "It doesn't matter if he does exist or not, Jay. It matters what you believe in your heart." "Nah man. I don't mean to brush your opinion aside but... if I learned anything useful from my time at the horde, it was that you need objective evidence when acting as evidence-gatherer for Law. You cannot just base things on feelings. Gut feelings are important but gut feelings can lead you astray. What if it's not a gut feeling at all?" "Yeah. I guess..." "You guess? No. In a court of law, you need solid evidence to bring charges against someone. You wouldn't really understand that because Abbey life isn't as, well, sophisticated as the horde life I left." "Okay." Dan wriggled a claw in his ear. "So what are you trying to get at?" "OK. In a court of law, you need evidence to bring a charge against someone. If you don't have evidence, you'll be charged with false-guilt accusation; in other words, accusing with no evidence. This is how it is like in the horde life." "I thought ye hordes were dumb." "Not this one. We're smart. We know our left paw from our right paw." "Fancy that." Kinjay frowned and looked over at Dan. "Seriously. You can't live in stereotypes. Dumb vermin do exist, but that's because they're born that way. At least that's what my mentor told me. I figured out he's wrong, because I made the choice to join the Academy and become an assassin. It's all about choices, Dan. You make the choice to get an education and you will go far." Dan shrugged. "I dunno about that." "Why?" "What do you mean why?" "Well, let's say for a moment you had the opportunity to get an education. And in this society you are living in, an education is a doorway. What do you want to be, an indentured servant to the Courts for the rest of your life? Or a barmaid? Or a farmer?" "I guess I wouldn't mind that." "Okay. But what if you get your arm infected and gotta get it removed? What will you do then?" "I guess... I guess I would get a big family!" The two laughed. Kinjay continued, "But seriously. Your mind has many arms that cannot be cut off. It also is the key to getting doors opened. Educating your mind is a doorway to new jobs, some of which require your mind and not necessarily your lost arm." "Nah... I just... I just don't like readin'. I mean, I don't know how to read. And it doesn't interest me. I don't need to learn how to read." "Okay. So what are you going to do if Sala doesn't work out? What if they're just a bunch of fools like we know them to be, and they don't crack their door even for a thirsty dibbun?" Dan stepped over a log. Kinjay followed suit. "Well, I guess I would probably high-tail it somewhere else. Go home." "Home - where is that?" "Seas. I'll make a raft and sail home. I'll hook up with my brother." "What if that doesn't work out?" Dan sighed and shrugged. "What does it matter?" "What does it matter?" Kinjay narrowed his eyes and stopped walking. "What is that, Dan? You gotta think in advanced about these things. You gotta think about how to survive. Isn't that what you sea otters are all about?" "No. The sea is home. It gives us food. It provides for us, and then we'll go to shore for fresh water and-" "And repeat the process." "So? Point being?" Kinjay sighed. "OK. Whatever. I guess we're just different like this." "Jay, I jus' like the way I've been livin'. I don't need to... get an education. It's not me. Me is on the open seas. I love it out there." Kinjay looks down for a moment. "Okay." He begins to walk forward but then stops when he doesn't hear Dan walking with him. "Dan-" "Glarrrrrg!" Kinjay whipped around. To his dismay, there stood Glintar holding a muscular arm around Dan's throat. The other paw wielded a knife, glinting in the sun. "Shuddap an' listen tae me. Gimme the sword an' I'll let ye two bumblin' fools go!" Kinjay frowns for a moment. He then notices the earnest, frightened look on Dan's face. Glintar isn't a chief tracker and assassin for no reason. "Now, I thought your job is to kill me." Glintar shrugs. "My heart jiggled at your warm, fuzzy conversation." "I sense sarcasm in your voice." "Right you do, captain obvious." Kinjay raised a paw and gestured. "Okay. Okay. You can have the sword. Just let him go." Glintar gestured with the knife. "Gimme the sword an' then we'll talk about yer friend 'ere. Cute couple you'd guys make." Kinjay's hairs bristled. He growled and withdrew the sword from his pack, wrapped in the crimson cloth. "Here." Kinjay threw the sword on the ground and snorted. "Okay, Glintar. You've got your sword. Now-" "And your blades. I know you Kinjay Maelsonne. You always have a trick up your sleeve." Glintar laughed and boasted, "I taught you well, didn't I?" Kinjay hesitated for a moment. Taking his middle and index claws, he inserted them up his cloak sleeve and withdraw a nasty looking dagger. He reproduced another from the other sleeve and dropped the two next to the sword. "There. Are we done?" "Yes." Glintar pushed Dan hard towards Kinjay. Dan fell forward, stumbled over the sword of Martin, and fell on his face on the ground. On his back was a blade and a blood stain on his tunic. Kinjay growled and waved his arm as if to exclaim something, but to Glintar's dismay a third blade flew out of Kinjay's paw. Glintar immedately sidestepped, the blade nicking his shoulder. Glintar laughed and grabbed the sword of Martin. "Foolish beast. I knew you had a third one. I taught you that trick. Don't you remember, or are you as dumb as you think you are?" "Right. Shaddup and be gone, bar-wench. You got your sword." Glintar snatched Kinjay's blades as well and began walking backwards. He laughed and pointed. "Now, no funny business! I got me two eyes on ye both. Ye jus' wait. Me an' meself had 'is eyes on ye two evah since ye kicked the daylights out of me bumblin' partners. Young an' brash, they be. Now they be visitin' Martin in 'ellgates!" "And so shall you." Glintar got a confused look on his face before he burst into laughter. "Is that... haha! Is that the best you have for me?" "Right about... now!" Glintar laughed again. "What do you mean, stupid fool? I-" Glintar's stumbled backwards and fell on his bum. "I... I can't see! Where'd me eyes go?" "Fox's Bane." "Got a steady paw. Ye paws were always steady." Glintar struggled to get up, but bumped his head into a tree. "Kinjay! I will kill you when I-" Kinjay rushed forward and sent a kick at Glintar's stomach. Kinjay took the sword of Martin and his two blades and said, "I believe these belong to me." "Ugh..." Glintar keeled over and coughed. Kinjay whispered into his ear, "Oh, and did I forget to mention Nightshade and Hagglestooth?" Glintar's eyes widened through his spasmodic breathing. Kinjay left Glintar and went to attend Dan, who - to Kinjay's surprise, was sitting up. Kinjay hesitated. "Okay. Seeing as you are alive, let's high tail it out of here before they figure their chief assassin is going to be on permanent leave." "Ye need to work on yore whisperin' skills matey. I could 'ear ye from a mile away." Kinjay smiled. "How's your back?" "Well, ye got a - aaaah!" To Kinjay's horror, Dan began to shake uncontrollably. Chapter 2 Category:Blog posts Category:Fan Fiction